Flaking paint by the radiator??

Treacle44

We've got a problem with flaking paint in a line along the wall behind our raditaor in the lounge. I think it may have been caused when we had cavity wall insulation, as it started soon after that. I wonder if it's because the heat from the radiator can't escape through the wall as well now.

There's no damp, the wlal is completely dry. We did a 50/50 coat or emulsion followed by two coats of Homebase emulsion when we decorated last year, but soon after the line appeared and now big bits of paint have flaked off there.

We have a new sofa coming in a couple of weeks so need to repaint as soon as possible. DH has sanded the wall down where the flaking is so it feels smooth again but I'm worried our repainting efforts will have been wasted and it'll peel again within a few months.

Any advice how we can prevent this happening again? It's not happened anywhere else in the room.

Thanks

x

Sally_Saver

HI not sure if you've already used this but I think you can get special radiator paint which means it is more resiliant, especially for heated surfaces.

Not sure if it'll help you but its worth a try

x

adandem

Hi, if the paint was put on in thick coats it can sometimes flake? Have you dried any washing on the rad? It may have been trapped moisture.
Before we stripped our wallpaper off it was peeling around the rads. All our walls are painted with normal emulsion now and they're fine.

maninthestreet

But some of that silver coated bubble wrap stuff, and but it behind the radiators - it will reflect the heat back into the room, and should protect the paintwork on the wall.

Treacle44

Hi yes I do dry washing on the radiators and I wondered if that may not have helped as there's now nowhere for the moisture to escape. It's never been a problem before.

DH has rubbed the wall down and put a 50/50 emulsion wash on, but so far you can still clearly see the ridge. Not sure what to do now. Hopefully it won't show once we get two coats of normal emulsion on.

Thanks